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Quality tripod for a tall user of a D7000

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Posted by Jerry-K: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 08:27

1^st Post

I am looking for a good quality tripod for a reasonable cost that is over 70 inches without a center column. I have been looking online, but would like to know what users think of their tripods. I am 6'5" tall so I need a rather tall unit. I would like the Really Right Stuff TVC-34L but it's $1,000.00 which is a bit high for me right now. I don't know much about other brands so any input is more than welcome. I'm just starting out in photography using a D7000, but I like to buy a tool once.

Thanks,
Jerry-K

____________________
Jerry A. Klevas

Posted by Robert: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 09:52

2^nd Post

Jerry-K wrote:
[quote}I like to buy a tool once.

Thanks,
Jerry-K
Welcome to the forum Jerry.

That would be nice, one tripod for everything... Nice idea but... Ask Ray!

The Manfrotto range goes quite big, they are well made and generally competitive price wise.

I have a Kennet Benbo and a surveyors heavy duty tripod, which goes pretty high, not sure it it goes to 70" though.

Well blow me down, with a head it will be about 72" to the lens! Depending on the leg spread of course!

I have been thinking of a slightly lighter, more conventional tripod for the last four years, maybe next year? It will probably be a Manfrotto 055 pro.

____________________
Robert.

Posted by Gilbert Sandberg: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 10:05

3^rd Post

Jerry,

Equally welcome,

I agree on Manfrotto I have more than one, their products are good enough for me (that one for the Gitzo addicts)
Be warned : cheap, sturdy and high do not go together in the world of tripods.
This is not the sort of item I could buy online, one has to touch and feel the tripod and its (lack of) sturdieness.
Be certain you bring the kit you want to use to a reputable shop and try it.

regards, Gilbert

Posted by jk: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 12:25

4^th Post

The Manfrotto 055CXProB that I have goes to 56" with the centre column down. Max height is 70".
It is very solid but heavy ~5lbs. I dont have the Carbon Fibre model but the standard aluminium model.

____________________
Still learning after all these years!
https://nikondslr.uk/gallery_view.php?user=2&folderid=none

Posted by TomOC: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 12:44

5^th Post

Welcome, Jerry

I'm sure Ray will chime in... both he and many of us have closets full of old tripods :-)

You are definitely on the right track with the RRS head... And get the L bracket for your body.

You don't say whether you want the tripod for studio or field work, so I'll make a comment on each.

For studio, weight doesn't matter, so probably a manfrotto beast will be the ticket - both on stability and price.

For everything else, there is no better tripod than the gitzo line - expensive in the short run, not so in the long run... Carbon fiber for weight and longevity. I've tried velbon (pretty good for a while) and others (now long gone) and I've never regretted the expense of the gitzo - it's in my trunk every day and bounces around and gets tons of use and still is as functional as the day I bought it. Highly recommended.

Cheers,

Tom

____________________
Tom O'Connell

-Lots of people talk to animals.... Not very many listen, though.... That's the problem.

Benjamin Hoff, The Tao of Pooh

Posted by Jerry-K: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 16:10

6^th Post

I guess I should have said I am looking for a tripod for use in the field. I have a Manfrotto 475 but it is too heavy for use out of the house. I have heard of the Benro and Induro brands as well as Gitzo and Manfrotto, but don't know anyone who has used them.

Jerry-K

____________________
Jerry A. Klevas

Posted by Robert: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 16:50

7^th Post

I like my Benbo it's very versatile. I have had it perhaps, 30 years? The leg locks are breaking up a bit but being a penny pincher they will probably do another few years, When I do eventually HAVE to replace them I guess they will no longer be available...

It's quite sturdy, I have adapted to to be a makeshift monopod, the legs are 'upside down' so you can stand it in rivers or mud without the mud getting into the slides. It's particularly good for low level stuff, you can hang the camera under the tripod for mushrooms or as I do occasionally as a remote GoalCam.

Mine is the middle model, there is a much larger version which I felt was unhandy for my needs.

Attachment: D1Tripod5680.jpg (Downloaded 42 times)

____________________
Robert.

Posted by Robert: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 16:56

8^th Post

A pic taken with that rigout...

D1 18-35mm lens.

Attachment: GoalCam2324.jpg (Downloaded 41 times)

____________________
Robert.

Posted by Jerry-K: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 17:22

9^th Post

____________________
Jerry A. Klevas

Posted by Robert: Wed Jun 20th, 2012 17:37

10^th Post

This is a more typical example of what I do with my Benbo.

Attachment: Screen Shot 2012-06-20 at 22.34.59.jpg (Downloaded 41 times)

____________________
Robert.

Posted by jk: Thu Jun 21st, 2012 04:18

11^th Post

JerryK,
I think that for your in the field tripod you are into compromises Weight v. Height and other factors.
It is not an easy decision process as it involves compromises or sacrifices.

____________________
Still learning after all these years!
https://nikondslr.uk/gallery_view.php?user=2&folderid=none

Posted by Jerry-K: Sat Jun 23rd, 2012 08:49

12^th Post

Well, I ordered a Gitzo GT3541XLS tripod and Really right Stuff BH55 ballhead, the height goes to 78" without a center column. I know some folks who have both and have seen them in action so I'm pretty sure what I'm getting. Got a pretty good price on the Gitzo too. :-)

It is not easy to find a tall tripod, just like everything else I need is hard to find, it sure is a real pain sometimes being 6'5" tall.

____________________
Jerry A. Klevas

Posted by jk: Sat Jun 23rd, 2012 09:43

13^th Post

Well done.
Hope you enjoy the new tripod.

____________________
Still learning after all these years!
https://nikondslr.uk/gallery_view.php?user=2&folderid=none

Posted by richw: Sat Jun 23rd, 2012 20:57

14^th Post

Jerry-K wrote:
Well, I ordered a Gitzo GT3541XLS tripod and Really right Stuff BH55 ballhead, the height goes to 78" without a center column. I know some folks who have both and have seen them in action so I'm pretty sure what I'm getting. Got a pretty good price on the Gitzo too. :-)

It is not easy to find a tall tripod, just like everything else I need is hard to find, it sure is a real pain sometimes being 6'5" tall.
Same height as me!

Posted by Ray Ninness: Thu Jun 28th, 2012 06:35

15^th Post

tripods, did someone mention TRIPOD's????

Right, I have a few, not in use much now days.. Carbon Fiber and all this light weight stuff is nice for the carrying!! BUT it absolutely goes against what the tripod is supposed to do, hold the camera study, no matter what.. And for that shear size and weight is still the best course..

I have a couple of carbon Fiber tripods and had been taken to use them on occasion, but if used as just a bit of support and with reasonably fast shutter speeds, they do a decent job..

Throw in a bit of wind, and longish shutter speeds, and the carbon Fiber fair, not so well.. I have been know to hang my Domke camera bag on them to help dampen out vibration induced by the wind, but for absolute sturdy camera support, heft and size are what matters..

So it's a trade off, how big do you want to go, verses how much can you carry, and how slow do you want to go shutter speed wise!!!

As I have mentioned before, most of my older Manfrottos/Bogan's are now relegated to being "Truck Tripods" as they seldom got more then twenty five yards from the truck !! But if I need long shutter speeds, they are a must!!! One of them extends all the way to Nine feet. and is also known as my ladder tripod!!!

If you want to play , you got'ah pay, one way or the other????

:letsplay:

____________________
Ray Ninness
F8Photos.com
Bedford, New Hampshire
USA

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